To Forgive or Not To Forgive
by bkwerm22
Summary: What would you do if the person who you loved hurt you? What would you do if that person got sick?
1. Chapter 1

"He's not fighting," the doctor was saying to Mr. and Mrs. Anderson. "Someone at his age should not be affected by pneumonia this badly."

"What can we do?" Mr. Anderson said.

"Talk to him. Tell him how much you love him and encourage him to fight. I won't pretend that this isn't serious, Mr. and Mrs. Anderson. Pneumonia can be deadly and your son needs to find the will to fight it."

"We'll try but I think I might know the reason he's not fighting," Mrs. Anderson put in.

"What is the reason?" the doctor asked.

"He and his… boyfriend recently broke up. I don't know why because Blaine won't tell us. But maybe if he could see Kurt, Blaine would fight," Mrs. Anderson replied.

"Right now, that sounds like Blaine's best hope. I suggest you get your son's ex boyfriend here as soon as possible."

Five days earlier

Blaine walked into the choir room with his cardigan wrapped tightly around his body. He had been fighting a cold for a couple days now and it was getting steadily worse. Blaine made his way over to one of the open seats and sat down next to Sam. "Dude, you don't look so good," Sam said.

"I'm fine," Blaine replied, but his face said otherwise.

"Dude, you have major bags under your eyes and you're shivering," Sam pointed out.

"I said I'm fine," Blaine grumbled with venom. Sam held up his hands in defeat.

"Jeez! Okay man, I'll back off," Sam replied.

Blaine nodded and turned his attention to Finn, who had just walked into the room.

"Okay guys, sectionals are coming up very soon so we need to really start getting the dances down," Finn began. He turned around and put on some music and the rest of the glee club stood up. "Let's start at the top. Blaine?"

Blaine stepped forward and began to sing. The rest of the glee club joined in and soon they were dancing. About a minute into the song, Blaine's voice wavered and he started coughing uncontrollably. Finn cut the music quickly and ushered Blaine over to a chair. "Can someone get him some water please?"

Tina ran over to the pitcher of water they kept in the choir room and poured Blaine a glass. She handed it to him and he took it gratefully. After taking a couple sips, Blaine lowered the cup.

"Are you okay to sing, Blaine?" Finn asked.

"I'm fine," Blaine said.

"Are you sure man? I mean you seriously look terrible," Sam chimed in.

"Back off, Sam! I'm all right. Let's just get back to work," Blaine growled. Then he got up from the chair and walked back to the center of the room. Everyone else looked at each other in confusion, but Finn started the music once again and they began from the top.

Blaine knew the dance like the back of his hand and was dancing smoothly until a sudden wave of dizziness overcame him. He tried shaking it off, but the next thing he knew was blackness.

Sugar shrieked and jumped out of the way as Blaine collapsed to the floor. Finn rushed forward. "Blaine? Shit, Blaine?" he said. Finn knelt down by the unconscious boy and placed a hand on Blaine's forehead. He pulled back him hand in alarm. "He's burning up! Quickly! Someone call 9-1-1!"

Finn ended up riding with Blaine in the ambulance. En route, Blaine opened up his eyes and looked at Finn blearily. "What happened?" he moaned.

"You collapsed in the choir room during rehearsal," Finn explained. "We're on the way to the hospital."

"I'm fine," Blaine said. He tried to sit up but one of the EMTs pushed him back down.

"Whoa there, Casanova. You are a very sick young man. Lie down," the man replied.

"You're going to be okay, Blaine. I called your mom and dad while we were waiting for the ambulance. They'll meet us at the hospital," Finn said.

"Finn. Don't tell him," Blaine said suddenly.

"Don't tell who?" Finn started to say before it dawned on him. "Dude, he'd want to know."

"Promise me, Finn. Don't tell him," Blaine urged before another coughing fit wracked his body, making it hard for him to breathe.

"Okay, that's enough talking for now," the EMT said. He placed an oxygen mask over Blaine's mouth and nose. However, once the coughing had subsided, Blaine pulled the mask off and grabbed Finn's wrist.

"Promise me. Please," he rasped.

Finn sighed. "Fine. I promise."

"Thank you," Blaine exhaled with relief. Then he fell unconscious once again.

Present Day

Finn Hudson had been coming to the hospital every day to visit Blaine. Although he continued to keep Blaine's secret, Finn knew his stepbrother would kill him if Finn didn't make sure Blaine was recovering. When he arrived, Finn almost collided with Mrs. Anderson. "Finn! I was hoping you'd come today!" she exclaimed.

"Of course! Blaine's my friend and I just want to make sure he's doing okay," Finn replied.

"That's what I want to talk to you about. Blaine's not doing very well. In fact, it's getting steadily worse. The doctor said he's not fighting," Mrs. Anderson explained.

"Oh man! Is there anything I can do?" Finn asked.

"Yes, actually. I need you to get Kurt here," Mrs. Anderson said.

"Kurt? Mrs. Anderson, Blaine asked me not to tell Kurt he was sick," Finn replied.

"Please, Finn. Blaine's taken a turn for the worse and I fear that Kurt's his last hope. He could… he could d-die," Mrs. Anderson choked out. This sent Finn's mind reeling.

"Crap! Okay, I'll call him right now," Finn said in shock.

"Thank you," Mrs. Anderson replied. She patted Finn's shoulder and reentered Blaine's room.

Finn took a deep breath and took out his cell phone. He dialed Kurt's number and waited for his stepbrother to answer. After four rings, the phone went to voicemail. "Well hello! You've reached Kurt Hummel, fabulous singer and intern at Vogue! Squeal! I'm not available at the moment so please leave a message and I will call you back as soon as I can. Bye!"

"Hey man, it's Finn. Listen, I need to tell you something important. Please call me back as soon as you get this message. It's urgent," Finn left a message and then hung up the phone. He hoped Kurt would return his call soon.

Immediately after Finn closed his phone, it began to ring. He looked at the caller ID and saw it was Kurt. "Hey Kurt," Finn answered.

"Hello Finn. Sorry I missed your call! I was just getting out of the shower. What's up?" Kurt asked.

"It's about Blaine," Finn began.

"Oops sorry. Can't talk about him," Kurt interrupted. "So if that's the only reason why you're calling, I need to go. I'm due at Vogue in an hour."

"Kurt! Wait!" Finn practically shouted. He heard Kurt sigh.

"Whatever it is, Finn, I don't care. He hurt me and right now, I really don't want to think about him," Kurt replied.

"Dude, I know that. And I know how bad being cheated on hurts, but this is really important," Finn argued.

"Ugh, fine. What?" Kurt asked.

"He's sick," Finn began.

"Sick? People get sick sometimes," Kurt said defensively.

"Will you let me finish? He's really sick, dude! He collapsed at rehearsal a couple days ago," Finn explained. He heard his stepbrother's sharp intake of breath.

"He what?"

"Yeah and he was taken to the hospital," Finn replied.

"Oh God! What's wrong with him?" Kurt asked.

"He has a very serious case of pneumonia. Kurt, I just ran into his mother and she said he's taken a turn for the worse. He could… he could die," Finn said. He heard a "thunk" as Kurt dropped his cell to the floor.

"RACHEL!" Finn heard Kurt scream. Then he heard some rustling as Kurt picked his phone back up. "I'm sorry, Finn. Dropped my phone. I will be there as soon as I can." The phone clicked off and Finn took a deep breath before heading off to find Mrs. Anderson.

In New York

Rachel was in the kitchen getting a snack when she heard Kurt screaming her name. It sounded urgent, so she put down her pretzels and made her way to Kurt's room. When she found him, Kurt was hurriedly throwing clothes in a suitcase. "Kurt, what are you doing?"

"I need to go back to Lima. Now," Kurt said.

"Why?"

"Finn called. Blaine's sick," Kurt explained.

"Well it must be very serious if you're packing to leave! What's wrong with him?" Rachel asked.

"He has a very bad case of pneumonia. Finn said he could…" Kurt couldn't bring himself to say it.

"He could what, Kurt?" Rachel asked. Kurt took a deep breath and looked at his roommate.

"He could… God, I can't even say it," Kurt replied. But Rachel could see the panic in his eyes and knew exactly what could happen.

"Oh God! Do you want me to come with you?" Rachel asked.

"No. I'll be okay. I'm going to call my dad and see if I can use the emergency credit card he gave me. I'll let you know when I land," Kurt replied.

"Okay. I hope Blaine will be all right!"

"I do too. Oh and could you do me a favor?" Kurt asked.

"Of course!"

"Could you call my boss and let her know what's going on?" he requested.

"Definitely," Rachel replied.

"Thanks."

12 hours later

Kurt had arrived in Lima about an hour ago and now he found himself standing outside the hospital. He trembled with trepidation as he made his way through the doors. Finn had told him the room number, so Kurt didn't bother stopping at the nurse's station. As he got closer and closer to his ex's hospital room, Kurt was growing more and more anxious. Finally, he reached a waiting room where his stepbrother was sitting awaiting his arrival. "Kurt!" Finn exclaimed upon seeing his stepbrother. He got up from the chair and pulled Kurt into a hug. "How was your flight?"

"It was okay. Dad picked me up and dropped me off here. He suggested I just get a ride home from you," Kurt replied.

"No problem, dude," Finn said.

"How is he?" Kurt asked.

"Not so good. His parents are with him now and I told them I'd bring you in when you got here," Finn explained. Kurt nodded as a knot began forming in his stomach.

"Oh- okay… can we go in and see him now?" Kurt asked.

"Sure. But first, there's something you should know," Finn said.

"What?" Kurt asked as he felt his stomach drop in fear.

"He has been having trouble breathing but a couple hours after I called you, it got worse," Finn began.

"How much worse?"

"Well, the doctor's had to put a tube down his throat to help him breathe. He just wasn't getting enough oxygen. So he won't be able to talk to you. Though, he hasn't said much in the past week. His mom told me he isn't fighting," Finn said.

"Oh God…" Kurt sighed, his hand flying up to his mouth. Finn placed both hands on Kurt's shoulders.

"Listen dude, you need to pull it together. You can't be freaking out when we go see Blaine. Okay? Do you need to sit down for a little?" Finn suggested. Kurt shook his head.

"No… no, I'm sorry. You're right. I want to see him now," Kurt said.

Finn nodded. "Okay, then let's go."

The two brothers started walking towards room 104 and Finn opened the door slightly. "Mrs. Anderson?"

Blaine's mother looked over at the door from her spot next to Blaine. "Finn! Is he here?"

"Yeah," Finn said. He opened the door wider and stepped aside so that Kurt could step into the room.

"Kurt! Thank God you're here," Mrs. Anderson exclaimed.

"I'll be outside," Finn said. He closed the door, leaving Kurt alone with Blaine and his mother.

Kurt quickly surveyed his surroundings. The room was bright white and machines were everywhere. One of the machines was making a steady beeping sound. Kurt looked upon an IV drip and with his eyes, followed the line down until it met Blaine's arm and disappeared beneath the skin. Mrs. Anderson, noticing Kurt eying the line, spoke. "It's antibiotics. Blaine also can't eat, so he gets nutrients from the IV too," she explained. Kurt nodded his understanding. His eyes traveled upwards until they rested on Blaine.

Kurt held back a gasp as he laid eyes upon his ex. Although Blaine was shorter than Kurt, he always stood tall. This time, however, Blaine looked incredibly small. His facial features were gaunt and deep, purple bags hung beneath his eyes. But the most noticeable thing was the tube coming from Blaine's mouth. Kurt watched as Blaine's chest rose and fell with the machine. "I know. It looks bad," Mrs. Anderson said.

Kurt cleared his voice before replying. "Erm, Finn said he's not doing very well… that he could…"

"Die? Yes, it's possible. Blaine isn't fighting the pneumonia. Kurt, I don't know what happened between you and my son, but you're his last hope," Mrs. Anderson answered, her voice cracking a little.

Suddenly, Blaine groaned and Mrs. Anderson turned back to look at him. His eyes were open and he was looking at his mother. Kurt watched as a small smile turned the corners of Mrs. Anderson's lips. She reached up and stroked Blaine's hair, which was curly and unruly from lack of hair gel. "Hey baby," she whispered. "There's someone here to see you."

Mrs. Anderson stood up from the chair and beckoned Kurt over. Taking a deep sigh, Kurt walked towards the now empty chair and took Mrs. Anderson's place. Blaine's eyes widened in surprise when he saw Kurt sit down. "Hey," he whispered.

Blaine blinked at him and reached over to grab Kurt's hand. Kurt felt Blaine's hand trembling with the effort it took to lift his arm. Blaine was incredibly weak, but was able to give Kurt's hand a small squeeze before letting his hand drop back onto the bed. "How are you feeling?" Kurt asked. Blaine slowly closed his eyes and kept them closed for a moment. Then he opened them back up and looked at Kurt expectantly. "Tired?"

Blaine blinked once. "He blinks one for yes and two for no," Mrs. Anderson offered. Kurt looked over at her and nodded in understanding. Then he looked back at Blaine and gave him a small smile.

"Blaine, I know you're tired, but you need to fight this," Kurt whispered.

"I'll just give you two some privacy," Mrs. Anderson said before slipping out of the room.

"Is this… is this because of me?" Kurt asked. Blaine's eyes widened in alarm and he blinked twice. "Okay, then what? Blaine, you have to fight. You have so many people who love you and would be lost if you weren't… around anymore." Kurt looked down for a second. "I don't know what I'd do if you… you let this…" Kurt trailed off. He couldn't finish the sentence.

Kurt also felt torn. On one hand, he was still incredibly hurt from Blaine cheating on him. Kurt didn't know what had happened between Blaine and this other guy, nor did he care to know. He thought back to when he returned to McKinley for the musical. Blaine had tried to talk to him, but Kurt didn't want to hear it.

On the other hand, even though Kurt was heartbroken, he still loved Blaine and he didn't want Blaine to die. Even though Blaine had blinked no, Kurt felt somehow responsible for Blaine choosing not to fight. Maybe if he'd at least let Blaine explain… no, he couldn't think that way. All he could do was try and get Blaine to fight. Then perhaps when Blaine got better, they could talk.

When Kurt didn't look back up, Blaine felt a pang in his heart and he reached over to grab Kurt's hand. He gave it a gentle squeeze and Kurt tore his eyes away from his lap to look at Blaine. Blaine gave him searching glance and although they were broken up, Kurt still knew when Blaine wanted to know what he was thinking. Taking a deep breath, Kurt squeezed back and began to talk. "Look Blaine… I'm not going to pretend that what you did doesn't still hurt; the pain is still there. But, I still… I still lo- care about you and if you… if you die, the pain of it would be far worse. Please, fight! You have to get better! And then… then maybe we can talk. I'm not making promises that we'll work things out but you just can't..." Kurt stopped talking as tears began to fall from his eyes. He looked back down at his hands and tried to get a hold of himself.

Kurt took a deep breath and raised his head back up to look in Blaine's eyes. Blaine had tears running down his face as well. "Blaine… will you fight? Please?"

Blaine blinked once and Kurt breathed a visible sigh of relief. At that moment, a nurse walked in to check Blaine's vitals. She smiled when she saw Kurt standing there. "Hello! And who might you be?" she asked.

"Um… I'm Kurt," Kurt replied awkwardly.

"Well hello Kurt! I'm sorry to interrupt, but I need to check Blaine's vitals," the nurse said.

"No problem. I have to go anyways," Kurt said. He turned back to Blaine and squeezed his hand. "I'll be back tomorrow."

Blaine nodded slowly and Kurt got up from his chair. "It was nice meeting you," Kurt said to the nurse.

"You too, sweetheart! Have a good evening!"

"Fight Blaine," Kurt murmured softly before leaving the room.


	2. Chapter 2

The next day, Kurt returned to the hospital. He walked to Blaine's room and ran into Mrs. Anderson who was leaving Blaine's room. "Kurt!" she exclaimed.

"Hi Mrs. Anderson," Kurt greeted her.

"I don't know what you said to him, but Blaine's getting better!" Mrs. Anderson beamed with happiness and pulled Kurt into a hug.

Surprised, Kurt awkwardly hugged her back and then pulled away. "How is he getting better?"

"They were able to take the breathing tube out! He's breathing on his own! And his fever has broken," Mrs. Anderson replied. "Would you like to see him?"

"Yeah," Kurt said.

"Okay! Well, I'm going to get some coffee. Go ahead and enter his room," she said. Kurt nodded and continued on towards Blaine's room. He nervously pushed open the door and stepped inside. Blaine turned his head in Kurt's direction and gave him a small smile.

"Hey," he rasped.

"Hey," Kurt said. He looked down at his feet and rocked a little. Kurt still intended to give Blaine a chance to explain. However, the pain was still fresh and he wasn't entirely sure he was ready to hear it.

"Kurt," Blaine said, interrupting Kurt's thoughts. "Please, come here."

Kurt looked up at Blaine who was holding out his hand. Blaine looked at him, his eyes pleading. Kurt took a deep breath and walked towards the bed. He sat down in a chair, his eyes trained on his hands. He started twiddling his thumbs, not trusting himself to look at Blaine without tearing up.

Blaine frowned. Yesterday had given him hope. Kurt had basically told him that he still loved Blaine but that he was still hurt. That had made Blaine feel sick to his stomach. But then Kurt told him he'd give him a chance to explain himself. Carefully and cautiously, Blaine placed a hand over Kurt's. "Please, stop," he rasped. "Look at me."

Kurt looked up and Blaine's heart clenched to see tears in his eyes. "I'm sorry," he whispered.

"Why are you sorry?"

"I didn't want to cry. Blaine, I know I told you we would talk but…" Kurt trailed off.

"You're scared. I get it," Blaine said. "We don't have to talk now. I'm just glad you're here."

"Why wouldn't I come? Blaine, Finn said that you could die!" Kurt exclaimed. He stood up from the chair abruptly and began pacing the room. Blaine watched him, his brow furrowed in concern.

"Kurt," He whispered.

Kurt froze and turned back around. He had tears streaming down his face. Blaine frowned and held out his hand. Kurt went back over and sat down, taking Blaine's hand as he did so. "I just… I don't know what I'd do if you'd…"

"I'm so sorry," Blaine said, his voice cracking. Kurt could feel Blaine's pain in the loaded apology he gave. "Kurt…I…"

"I know. Me too. But that doesn't change the fact that you…" Kurt trailed off.

"That I cheated on you… Yeah, I understand. But please… let me explain," Blaine begged.

"I'm just not ready. You almost dying? That's all my heart can take at the moment. Blaine, the pain is still there," Kurt said. Blaine nodded in understanding. He reached up and wiped the tears from Kurt's cheeks.

"I love you so much, Kurt," Blaine murmured.

"I love you too. I'll come back tomorrow," Kurt promised. He knelt forward and chastely kissed Blaine's forehead. Blaine's eyes closed at the feathery touch of Kurt's lips. It felt like hope. He watched as his ex stood up from the bed and started for the door.

"Kurt?" Blaine called out.

Kurt turned and looked at Blaine, raising his eyebrows expectantly. "Yes?"

"Thank you for coming," Blaine said.

"You're welcome. Get some rest," Kurt replied. And with that, he left the room.

When Kurt got home, Finn was waiting for him on the front porch. "How's he doing?" Finn asked as soon as Kurt walked up to him.

"Better. They took the tube out. We talked," Kurt replied.

"Oh… wow! Did you talk about your break-up?" Finn asked. Kurt shook his head and sat down by his stepbrother.

"I couldn't. I mean, I still love him but…" Kurt trailed off, not sure what to say.

"But he hurt you. I get it," Finn finished.

"Yeah. And I don't think I'm ready to hear the details of his infidelity," Kurt replied.

"Infidelity?" Finn asked.

"He cheated on me, Finn," Kurt offered. He loved his stepbrother but jeez, get a better vocabulary!

"Oh… right," Finn answered. He looked thoughtful for a moment and then said, "Can I offer up some 'brotherly wisdom?'"

Kurt shrugged. "Okay…"

"I don't know if Rachel ever told you, but she cheated on me once," Finn began. Kurt looked at his brother in shock.

"She… she did?"

"Yeah. She thought I had slept with Santana, which I didn't, so she went and made out with Puck. It was a stupid mistake, but I couldn't forgive her so we broke up," Finn said.

"Okay but I don't see what this has to do with Blaine and me," Kurt said. "I mean, all she did was kiss Puck."

"But like you said, you don't even know what happened with Blaine. For all you know, all he did was kiss another guy too," Finn said. "Look bro, the point I'm trying to make is, Rachel hurt me. But, we did eventually get back together because she tried so hard to prove to me that she cared about me and was truly sorry. Listen, Blaine has been a wreck since you broke up. Like, during auditions for Grease, he cried after his song. He didn't even want the part of Danny."

"Okay…"

"And he just hasn't been himself in like, forever. He almost went back to Dalton!" Finn added. This got Kurt's attention.

"What?"

"Yeah, he came and told me about it. He sang with them or whatever and said he didn't belong at McKinley anymore," Finn replied. "We were able to convince him not to go, that he still had friends at McKinley."

"I didn't know that," Kurt said.

"Well it's the truth. And Kurt look, I don't think cheating on someone is ever okay. But forgiveness? Forgiveness allows us to move on. It helps us to try and mend what was broken," Finn replied. Kurt stared at his stepbrother in astonishment. This was deep for Finn.

"Wow, Finn. That was beautiful," he said. Kurt turned to stare at the front lawn, deep in thought, while Finn sat beside him patiently. After a few minutes, Kurt turned to look at Finn. "Finn, I'm going to go back to the hospital," he announced. Finn smiled.

"Good. And listen Kurt. Forgiveness doesn't necessarily mean take him back. It just allows you to both move on, if that's what needs to happen."


End file.
